This invention broadly relates to motor tilting mechanisms for power boats. More particularly, the present invention relates to manually operated auxiliary trim systems for conventional outboard motors.
As will be recognized by those skilled in the art, outboard motor trim must often be adjusted A primary reason is to adapt the boat for different loads. Another reason is to facilitate navigation through shallow areas where contact with the bottom or with underwater obstacles must be avoided.
Brackets to adjust the trim of outboard motors have long been present in the art. Some have taken the form of brackets attached to the motors themselves; others are brackets to be attached to the transom of the boat. Some are affixed to both. Macgregor, U.S. Pat. No. 4,682,959, discloses a mounting bracket for an outboard motor that basically consist of two parallel brackets hanging down either side of the motor and a pin or a saddle extending between the brackets to fix the motor at a given trim.
Hervat, U.S. Pat. No. 4,863,405, discloses an outboard motor tilt locking device employed to lock an outboard motor at its fully lifted position. Forsgren, U.S. Pat. No. 4,876,740, discloses an outboard motor tilt mechanism which is intended to lock a motor tilted by hand at a desired position. U.S. Pat. No. 4,826,459 granted to Slatery May 2, 1989 relates a tilt mechanism for outboard motors which is intended to function as the mounting bracket for the motor and does not tilt the motor other than by manually grasping the motor and tilting it. Boda, U.S. Pat. No. 4,925,410, discloses a tilt mechanism lock for outboard motors. This is a lock that can be employed in the conventional brackets of the motor that will positively lock the motor in its most upright position for trailering.
Many patents disclose systems for power tilting a motor. Among these are Pierce, U.S. Pat. No. 4,687,448, Notch, U.S. Pat. No. 4,778,415, and Nakamuran Suzuki, U.S. Pat. No. 4,308,018. Although each of the latter patents relate a system or elements of a system to provide power tilt in an outboard motor, these systems are generally mounted to the transom and/or to the motor. Problems with these systems include reliability, expense, and speed, as well as fixing the motor in a position where it can be damaged when an under water obstruction is struck.
It is desirous to produce a mechanical device which allows one to tilt an outboard motor to a plurality of positions while in operation. It is not necessary that this device be made a part of the motor bracket nor is it necessary for it to be attached to the motor in any way. It can be extremely advantageous to permit the operator to immediately actuate the tilt device without waiting for a hydraulic or electronic system. Such a device must allow for tilt adjustments without restraining the motor to allow the motor to kick back when it contacts an object.
Also, a system allowing immediate release of the motor once an obstacle is cleared would be helpful. Finally, in order to "custom tailor" such a device to the individual user it must allow one to adjust the position of the motor contacting element to change the degree of tilt and motor offset without effecting the mechanical advantage available to the operator at the end of the lever. Meanwhile, the device should allow mechanical advantage to be sacrificed for an even greater amount of tilt. If possible, an ideal device should adjustable to fit a variety of motors of different configurations and dimensions, while allowing variations in the selected mechanical advantage.